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Monday, February 12, 2018

Reader's Diary #1731- Anonda Canadien: Damage

It's kind of shocking that Anonda Canadien was only 14 when she wrote "Damage." It has the quality of writing you'd expect from someone who's been doing this for years (from the opening hook sentence, to the strong imagery, to the varied sentence lengths for effect). She'll definitely be a writer to watch.

It's also shocking that this story of residential school feels so real coming from someone who, thankfully, has not lived it personally. That said, it's less shocking and more sad when you read her author's statement and understand that it comes across as so authentic because she's still feeling the effects and for some, those she spoke to for this story, the memories are still very much vivid. She's still proud, however, that her people are strong and rose above and will continue to rise above the terrible legacy of residential schools, even while they can never forget.